Dr. Donnica Moore, Editor-in-Chief of Women’s Health for Life and host of DrDonnica.com will reappear on ABC's "The View" Thursday, July 16, 2009 to discuss a topic relevant to all women: "Aging Healthfully: Preventive Tips and Simple Steps”. "Our bodies’ health—particularly as we age—requires that we take precautionary measures to strengthen ourselves. By incorporating a few simple steps into your daily routine, you can help turn back the clock and limit the effects of age-related damage,” says Dr. Donnica. Specific topics to be discussed include bone loss, dental enamel loss, and skin damage.

“There are many conditions that too often go overlooked when it comes to our health,” says Dr. Donnica. “The best way to take care of these issues is preventively and the best way to do that is to prioritize your daily health habits,” she adds. “Oral health, for example, is integral to our overall wellness”, emphasizes Dr. Donnica. Most women know that they need to brush and floss first thing in the morning and last thing before we go to bed. But in addition to protecting their smile against gum disease and cavities, women need to shield their tooth enamel. Enamel loss can occur when acids from everyday foods and beverages, such as fruit, yogurt, salsa, orange juice and sports drinks attack the tooth surface. “If left untreated, the result can be irreversible enamel loss, which can lead to larger issues such as cavities, sensitivity, veneers, dentures and even oral surgery,” cautions Dr. Donnica. “To protect your enamel, I recommend new Crest Pro-Health Enamel Shield toothpaste,” says Dr. Donnica, “because contains the active ingredient stannous fluoride, which binds to enamel to create a micro-thin shield against acid attack.”

Dr. Donnica and DrDonnica.com have partnered with Crest Pro-Health to create the Dental Health Center to raise awareness about the important of oral health and protecting enamel from acid attack. “I am happy to team up with Crest Pro-Health because their products protect all seven areas dentists check most: cavities, gingivitis, plaque, tartar, sensitivity, fresh breath, and whitening,” says Dr. Donnica.

Other health conditions that women often overlook which influence how well we age include skin care and bone loss. The skin is our largest organ, weighing up to seven pounds in an average sized woman and including over 300 million cells! The skin literally holds us together and protects us from the elements, but it’s susceptible to premature aging, wrinkles, and skin cancer. More than one million Americans will be diagnosed with skin cancer this year. While most of those cases will be relatively easily treated, more than 8,000 Americans will die this year from malignant melanoma, which is also the number one cancer killer of women aged 25—29. The sad fact about this is that skin cancer is largely preventable, following the four S’s: slip, slap, slop, slide. Slip on a shirt, slap on a hat, slop on your sunscreen (and reapply as needed), and slide on your sunglasses.

There are downsides to just about everything, however, and one of the downsides to rigorous protection from sun exposure is decreased levels of Vitamin D. “Vitamin D is one of those vitamins that the more we learn about it, the more benefits we learn that it has!” says Dr. Donnica. One of its most important benefits is aiding with calcium absorption, which is essential for proper bone development and maintaining bone mass. Usually, when we talk about the importance of maintaining bone mass, we focus on calcium inake and weight bearing exercise. We heard about this recently in the news that both Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Supreme Court Justice nominee Sonya Sotomayor both sustained fractures. “While we don’t know whether either of them has had their bone density tested, if they have low bone mass, or if they have osteoporosis, we do know that they are both in high risk groups because of their age (over 50) and their racial background: both fair-skinned blonde women and Hispanic women are at increased risk,” explains Dr. Donnica. We also don’t know about their calcium and Vitamin D intake. Women need 20 minutes of sun exposure per day to produce an adequate vitamin D level; the rest we have to get from our diet or supplements. Foods that are high in vitamin D content include: cod liver oil; several fish (herring, catfish, mollusks, oysters, sockeye salmon, steelhead trout, halibut, sardines, and mackerel) and regular or soy mild supplemented with Vitamin D. The amount of vitamin D that most doctors now recommend for adult women is 800—1000 IU. Many doctors are also recommending that women have their vitamin D levels tested.